Mobile cellphone snatchers at the prowl

CHENNAI: Cell smartphone snatchers are once again on the prowl. Three people lost their cell phones on Monday night. In Nungambakkam, a journalist running with an information channel lost his mobile smartphone on Monday night to a snatch-and-grab. The sufferer, J Senathipathi, 23, of Vadapalani, turned into talking on his cell phone. He changed into standing outside in his workplace. Two guys on a motorcycle who were passing by snatched his cellular phone and escaped from the scene. Though he attempted to capture them, they vanished in the dark. Based on his complaint, the Nungambakkam police registered a case, and a hunt was launched. In every other incident in Nungambakkam, a cellular phone was snatched from a person who was walking to his room. The victim, Narayana Pramod, forty-seven, of Nungambakkam, was messaging on his cell phone when the thieves snatched it. He instructed police that the snatchers had been carrying helmets. Police have accumulated the CCTV photos.

In a similar incident, Raja of Vyasarpadi was also robbed of his cell phone by unidentified men.
Most of the cellular phone snatchers who were caught by the police stated they targeted people occupied with their cell phones. They might target individuals who engage in speaking on their cell phones while taking walks on the streets.

At times, snatchers might divert their interest by tapping on their shoulders, clutching their phones, and breaking out. In most instances, cellphone snatchers belonged to the same locality where the crime was committed, said a police officer. “Unemployed youths from the slums, who need to make some brief cash, bask in such sports,” said the officer.